Shen Xuan had painted two more pictures these days, along with some regular patterns for his neighbor, Madam Li, to use as bases for her embroidery.
On this day, Madam Li brought the handkerchiefs she had embroidered and arrived at Shen Xuan's place early. The two had agreed the day before that Afu would take their paintings and handkerchiefs to town to sell.
"Your wife treats you so well; you truly are a fortunate one," Wu Rong teased, glancing at Shen Xuan.
"Brother-in-law, don't you think of laughing at me. Aren't you also taken care of by Sister Li to the point of becoming plump? Isn't Sister Li completely devoted to you?" Shen Xuan winked at him ambiguously, a mischievous smile on his face.
These past few days, Lu Yu had been frequently approaching Shen Xuan to make intimate gestures. Shen Xuan was no longer as easily shy as he was when he first arrived.
A few days ago, Shen Xuan still remembered to uphold his duty as a husband, being extremely reserved. If Lu Yu got a little close, he would become so shy he wouldn't know what to do. But now, he was no longer timid and bashful as he had been before.
Madam Li's face turned red from Shen Xuan's words, and she said indignantly, "You good-for-nothing Shen Xuan, your face has grown thicker, and you've learned to tease me." Reading.
As she spoke, her eyes darted, and she leaned close to Shen Xuan's ear to whisper, "Seriously, you've been married for a month now. Go back and have your wife feel your pulse. If you happen to be pregnant, be careful not to harm the fetus without knowing."
"I won't," Shen Xuan said, his mood dipping slightly as he shook his head.
"It's better to be cautious. Looking at you two newly married, it's a time of sweet affection, this..." Madam Li didn't finish, her eyes appraising Shen Xuan from head to toe, her unspoken meaning quite obvious.
Shen Xuan understood this time, but being a man who had not yet experienced intimacy, his cheeks still flushed with embarrassment at these words.
Shen Xuan lowered his head, his gaze falling on their clasped hands, and said nothing more. It was not appropriate to let others know about such private matters between husband and wife.
The main reason they hadn't consummated their marriage was his own.
They had just resolved their misunderstandings and opened their hearts to express their affection, but due to his menstrual cycle, the progress of consummation was delayed. Whenever he was with his wife, he could feel her suppressed desire.
His menstrual cycle had ended these past few days, but he had caught a cold. His wife did not want to trouble him, and only held him at night, afraid he would get cold.
This cold had come at the worst possible time, not only delaying this matter but also postponing the visit to the doctor's clinic that he had originally agreed to with his wife for these days.
The morning passed quickly. After Madam Li left, Shen Xuan began to worry about Afu alone in the room. Normally, Afu would take only a morning to complete his round trip. Why hadn't he returned today? He feared Afu might have encountered some trouble.
Shen Xuan's guess was accurate; he had indeed encountered trouble, though it wasn't Afu himself who had run into it.
As for Afu, before he could return home after selling the handkerchiefs and paintings, he saw Gu Yitong emerging from Yuman Tang.
Afu naturally knew what Yuman Tang was, but he only knew part of the story, not the whole. Like Shen Xuan, he mistakenly believed that brothels were places where women went to seek pleasure.
It was she who had led the family head astray, and only then did the family head go to the brothel with her. Afu thought resentfully in his heart, but his gaze remained fixed on Gu Yitong's retreating back, his footsteps involuntarily following.
He saw Gu Yitong walking unsteadily. She went to a secluded place, found a corner to sit, and leaned against the wall, her eyes dazed. It was clear she was drunk.
Afu wanted to leave but felt uneasy leaving a drunken woman alone. After all, she knew the family head.
As Afu hesitated whether to send her back to the medical clinic, in that moment, several burly women dragged Gu Yitong into a secluded alley nearby.
Following behind them was Sun Fan, the daughter of the former town mayor.
Afu was so startled he was dumbfounded. He immediately ran to the side of the alley and listened to the commotion coming from inside.
"Beat her hard!"
A low roar came from the alley, followed by Gu Yitong's muffled groans.
This was the first time Afu had witnessed such a scene, and he was so frightened he didn't know what to do. He wanted to find someone to help but was too scared to move.
He felt a gust of wind pass by him, and then a person quickly ran in and stood in front of Gu Yitong. Afu then saw clearly that the person who ran in was a man, and that man was Mu Xiang.
Mu Xiang had personally seen Gu Yitong leave in a dazed state after getting drunk. He was worried and had quietly followed her. Who knew he would encounter such a situation.
"Oh! So the beauty has arrived. What? Want to save him?" A lewd voice came from Sun Fan.
Sun Fan said with a lecherous smile, "You can save him too, by using yourself as exchange."
"Everything I'm doing is for you. If she hadn't interfered back then, you and I would have already..." Sun Fan said, her hand restlessly stroking Mu Xiang's face.
Before Sun Fan could finish, Gu Yitong, who was lying to the side, punched her in the face, fiercely shielding Mu Xiang behind her.
Gu Yitong's movements were swift, and at that moment, everyone's attention was on Mu Xiang and Sun Fan, which allowed her to succeed.
"Beat her to death!" Sun Fan had never been treated like this before. Losing her mind, she shouted madly.
Sun Fan's guards looked hesitant, "Mistress, if there's a death..."
"Useless! Beat her hard, and I'll take responsibility if she dies!"
Seeing this, the four guards surrounded Gu Yitong.
"Don't be afraid, sister won't let them hurt you. Don't be afraid." Gu Yitong's drunkenness had completely sobered up. She protected Mu Xiang and kept retreating, just like when she was a child, always shielding him when facing trouble.
Mu Xiang's eyes welled up with tears, and he tightly gripped Gu Yitong's collar, not daring to let her step forward.
Gu Yitong gently patted Mu Xiang's hand and began to fight them.
Fists are no match for four hands, let alone four guards who were skilled in combat. Soon, Gu Yitong was at a disadvantage.
A tall guard kicked Gu Yitong in the chest. The powerful impact sent Gu Yitong flying out, crashing heavily against the wall. She fell to the ground, spitting out a mouthful of blood, yet she still forced herself to stand up, wanting to protect Mu Xiang.
Seeing this, Afu's body could no longer control itself, and he shouted, "Help! Help! Someone is trying to kill someone! Help!"
The guards inside heard the sound and wanted to chase out and knock Afu unconscious, but Afu had already anticipated that they wouldn't let him escape. As soon as he opened his mouth, he bolted outwards.
Gu Yitong naturally heard the sound too. Enduring the burning pain in her ear, she stood up and used all her strength to hold them back.
Blood from her ear was already flowing down her neck into her clothes, but Gu Yitong couldn't care about the pain. The only way they could survive now was to let Afu run out and fetch reinforcements.